Page 9 of A Little Christmas 4: Teller
“So you’re not some slimy married guy trying to cheat on his wife with me? You’re not on the down-low?” Teller asked.
I chuckled. “Not at all. I’m forty-four years old and unmarried. I’ve been in a few relationships over the years, but none of them have ended in marriage. What else do you want to know about me?”
“We’ve only met a few times. We barely know each other. Why do you want me to know things about your life?” Teller’s gaze didn’t leave mine. “Are you—do you want money from me or something? I mean, you’ve mentioned that you’re looking for a place to live. You’ve shown up at my jobs, though I did tell you the places where I worked. You came into O’Malley’s on Fridaywhen I was on shift. Surely you can see how this comes across as outrageously disturbing, right?”
“Excuse me. Could I get some help?”
We both turned toward an older woman who was holding a package of undershirts. I quickly turned toward a rack of pajamas to leave Teller to do his job.
I studied Teller to see that he was extremely kind to the woman, explaining the sizes to her and listening to her as she told him about her husband being in a memory-care nursing facility after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She’d cared for the man she’d been married to for fifty-two years as well as she could until it became too much for her, and her sons had demanded she find a facility for him. It was easy to see it had hurt her to do so.
I watched Teller wipe his eyes as he rummaged through a drawer under the register. “I found a coupon, Mrs. Bingham. Get another pack of T-shirts. It’s a buy-one-get-one free sale.”
I took a deep breath at hearing his lie. I knew the previous Friday night, when I’d gone to the pub, that Teller hadn’t charged me for my food, though I could have bought the pub. I wasn’t bragging, but Teller’s kind disposition and tender heart touched me deeply.
My only question was how the hell could I get him to let me into his life?
Rolling into the office early Tuesday morning, I tried to get a handle on my emotions. I knew Madeline hadn’t done anything wrong when she returned the coat and ties for me, but the fact that Teller lost his position in the men’s department because ofsomething Madeline said pissed me off—if she said anything at all. There was a distinct possibility Kerry had made that shit up.
Reining in my protective nature was important because Teller and I literally knew nothing about each other. Though that wasn’t what I wanted for the future.
I took the elevator up to the executive floor and stopped at Madeline’s empty desk to wait so I could talk to her. My cell rang, so I pulled it from my pocket and glanced at the screen to see it was Barrett. “Hey, Barrett. How are you?”
“I’m good. I haven’t heard from you since we met at Chez Remy, so I wondered if you’d changed your mind.”
“Oh, hell, Barrett. I definitely haven’t changed my mind. You in?” I’d been caught up in the thrall of a lovely young man and had neglected my business responsibilities. Surprisingly, I wasn’t sorry about it in the least.
I needed to get my head out of my ass. Barrett was my friend, and he deserved my attention because he was important to me and my future plans.
With Barrett and me working together, we had the chance to have time and space to pursue other interests. Barrett had already found love, and he’d want more time for his little girl. I wanted the same for myself, and if we worked together, we’d each get what we wanted.
“Your offer’s too good to turn down. When do you want me, Briggs? I took off next week for Thanksgiving, so I can come into the office, and we can plot world domination. I gave my notice to the prosecutors’ office, but it’ll take a month to pass off my cases to a colleague. I can’t fucking wait.” Barrett laughed, and I joined him.
That was another reason I like him. He had a sense of humor.
“Come to York Properties on Monday. You can start full-time after the first of the year. Madeline will set you up with anythingyou need so you’ll be ready to go after the first of the year. She can even help you find an assistant.”
“I’ll see you on Monday.” Barrett ended the call.
As I was about to scratch out a message for Madeline on a slip of paper, the elevator chimed and she stepped off. “You’re here before me? What’s wrong?”
I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Did you tell the folks at Bloomfield’s that you were my wife and you didn’t approve of my purchase? When you returned the jacket and ties, I mean?”
Her face dropped for an instant before she started laughing. “Briggs, the guy was an asshole and had a nuclear meltdown when I returned those items. He refused to take your credit card to make the return, insisting that you return the items yourself, so I thought, ‘What would Briggs do?’ Well, knowing you, I decided not to give him a choice.”
I chuckled, seeing Madeline’s staunch demeanor. “Oh, and what would Briggs do?”
“I told the asshole that I was your wife and you were on an allowance, and I hadn’t authorized the purchases. I told him to return them or I’d call Mrs. Bloomfield, whom I played bridge with on Thursday evenings, and tell her he was being a bitch.”
Holding in my laughter wasn’t possible. My anger faded to affection. She was damn right about what I would have done in her place. “I’m sorry I doubted you. Thank you, Madeline.”
She put her purse inside her desk and stared at me. “Get me a coffee with two creamers.”
I bowed. “As you wish. Pastry?”
“No, I’m going to a wedding just before Christmas. I had my dress fitted, and I cannot gain an ounce. Oh, I wouldn’t mind a fruit cup. Heston slinked out of the house this morning, that asshole, and I had to search the neighborhood for him, finally found him in a neighbor’s yard, sniffing after their female cat. I didn’t get anything for breakfast. Now, away with you.” Shedismissed me with a flutter of her hand, and I laughed as I went to the elevator.
I was actually proud of the way Madeline had handled that snippy dick, Mr. Kerry. I’m just glad I wasn’t there. I’d have smacked the shit out of him. He had no business questioning why the merchandise was being returned. It had the tags and a receipt, along with my card. Who the hell steals merch and returns it with the same credit card?
